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Brilliance or Buffoonery?


R. Joshua Reynolds

Recently I had the opportunity to view the work of a young film-maker. Comparing the social effects of two television series, Clarence Williams IV asks very important questions. “Brilliance or Buffoonery” is a documentary-style case study of two popular black sitcoms Amos N Andy and Kenan and Kel. While the two series were produced years apart, Williams points out striking similarities.

As the title of the piece indicates, Williams asks various members of the African-American their opinions of both shows. After seeing clips of Amos N Andy, I was surprised at the initial response from first time viewers. The seasoned interviewees mention that upon their first viewing of Amos N Andy they were happy to see Black actors appear on a television show. Only predated by a few years, Amos N Andy was one of very few of its kind. Indeed, each episode brought a sense of joy and for some pride. Now, with more years and more wisdom, the seasoned participants shared different sentiments.

A few stated that now they realize all of the stereotypes that were being portrayed by the Actors in the 1950s television series. They make mention of blacks being portrayed in a negative light: lazy, jovial and ignorant. The question arose, “Are blacks still portrayed as such?”

Williams next examined the more recent hit show Kenan and Kel. What he found were striking resemblances to the older show. In both shows, one of the main characters had some control over his cohort. Both shows used physical comedy as a means to garner laughter from its audience. However, a big difference was how Williams’ interviewees reacted to Kenan and Kel.

Generally, the newer sitcom is not viewed as disrespectful to black culture. Indeed, many positive qualities about Kenan and his friend Kel were pointed out. Kel was highly intellectual. Too add, his parents were rocket scientists. Some did admit, however, that did portray some stereotypes but also noted that white shows in the same era displayed the same “buffoonery”. Therefore, it was not viewed as particularly racist.

Creating a documentary for school, Williams displays great potential as a future filmmaker. While there are minor cinematography improvements that can be made, Williams made very good choices as to the order of his presentation and his delivering of content. Viewers have a lot to look forward to when Williams’ future endeavors come to fruition.

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A Class Act

After submitting the short-film, “Locks,” on a whim, Ryan Coogler was thrust into the indie film limelight as a talent we should all take notice of. “It was surprising and humbling,” said the modest filmmaker.

As a graduate film student at the competitive University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts, there is no doubt: this young man is gifted. Ryan is the recipient of several directing and filmmaking scholarships including the National Association of Theater Owners (NATO) scholarship for achievement in directing.

Coogler made a flawless transition to film festival nominee after a stellar college football career as a wide receiver at Sacramento State University. “I’ve played sports my whole life and directing is similar,” Coogler said. “You collaborate with a writer, sometimes to get better results.” He credits his start in filmmaking to a college creative writing teacher.

“She told me I should try writing screenplays…I didn’t think much of it, I thought I would give it a shot, so I started writing,” Ryan said.

Ryan’s short-film “Locks,” which he wrote and co-produced with Francisco Kosterlitz, has received positive reviews from the public and noteworthy individuals, among them San Francisco Bay Area recording artist Goapale. It was selected by the Tribeca Film Festival programmers to be shown on select Delta Airlines flights as part of Delta’s 3rd Annual Fly-In Movie Competition. The film also helped Ryan make his international debut when it was accepted into the 2009 Cannes Film Festival in France and the Urbanworld Film Festival in New York.

The six-minute film explores the everyday life of Dante, an African-American youth in Oakland, Calif. Dante’s walk to a local barbershop exposes both the benefits and hardships that come with being an African-American man with dreadlocks.

According to Ryan, “He [Dante] represents anyone who is young and misunderstood–anyone who had to watch a loved one suffer through something they couldn’t control.”

With the insightful messages of his films, this Bay Area native’s filmmaking style could be compared to that of Hollywood legend Spike Lee.

“Movies don’t save the world,” Ryan told Black Film. “But they can help by telling a story, they can open your eyes.”

Although he is ambitious, Ryan remains grounded. He insists, that he just wants to tell the story of people who are too often forgotten.

Currently, Ryan is working on a film titled “Nightwalkers,” which is about a young mother who works in the streets as a prostitute. After completing graduate school, Ryan hopes to continue making films that can impact the lives of others, and eventually direct a feature length film.

-Ashley Venable

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